Greg Peters ran the Hershey Half Marathon and finished with a time of 2:23:05. This was a personal record by 0:0:59.
Goal #1… Finish …. check
Goal #2… Run entire distance … check, this was huge for me
Goal #3… Beat prior race time of 2:24:04… check bested this by 59 seconds
Goal #4… Break 2h 20m … shy by 3:05.I was extremely happy with the first 3 miles of this race. I kept my targeted pace excepting a few of the downhills. Race was pretty good up until 9.5 when the hilly nature of the course started taking its toll. The last stretch was trying to keep consistent effort up the hills and then recovering for the next. I had run the last half of the race twice and never been able to run the final two hills in the last mile and a half, so to run the entire course was a big accomplishment for me.
Melanie Ford ran the Abingdon Marathon with a finishing time of 3:59:49, which was a PR!
First ever marathon aged 60 yrs. Race start 9:00am Misty and chilly at 6 deg C. Race starts and ends in a sports stadium. Plenty of elite runners as this is a pretty flat course so good for PBs. Determined to keep to race plan.
Managed generally to keep to pace and was with another group of runners until around 11 miles. From halfway increasing numbers of people were walking or slow jog. Felt fine and kept to roughly even pace. Was now passing people. Came to 20 miles and was expecting to hit a wall at some time, but was OK. Kept to hydration and gel plan. Passing people is amazingly encouraging. Hardest mile was 24-25 but then improved, but last mile did seem a long mile. Really pleased with my time. I wanted below 4:30, but ideally wanted as near to 4 hrs as possible.
Just want to say a huge huge thank you to Runners Connect. I chose you as you were evidenced based and I understood all the physiology regarding training, nutrition etc. I followed your plan and got what I wanted. However the conditions on the day also worked in my favour. I know sometimes one can do all the right things but a race doesn’t work out. Today it did.
Satish Mocherla ran the TCS Amsterdam Marathon and finished in a time of 4:23. This was a massive PR by 21 minutes!
First, my sincere thanks to Coach Dylan Belles, for seeing me through this and helping me to get my PR – HUGE PR!!. When I signed up for One on One coaching, I did not realize how truly it is IS one-on one. Coach Dylan was always available to talk, text email. With my crazy work schedule, we had to change workouts frequently and he was always so encouraging and supportive. For those of us with crazy work schedules, I sincerely believe that on on one training is the way to go. Thank you Coach!
Amsterdam was wonderful, the city, course and people are just great! The one take away from this race is that doing negative splits from mile 18 to mile 23 was rather difficult due to narrower roads and its quite impossible to run faster at that point. All in all- GREAT arrangements, and very supportive crowds!
Shashidhar TB ran the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon 2018 and finished in 2:02:00. This was a new personal record by 15 minutes!
This half marathon is the most coveted half marathon in India. I personally badly wanted to do sub2 HM but due to miscalculation of pace (watch was showing graded average Pace and it was about 10 secs off every 1 km) and I did not factor hm distance 21.3 km and that .3 km took another minute extra, I lost my sub 2 goal ..
But I am really happy that with RC training and constant support of coaches I could push my self harder and had a very good outcome.. now I am thrilled and I am planning for Full marathon.
Dean Morley ran the Worthing Parkrun 5k and finished this distance in the time of 00:18:19, which was a PR by 2 seconds!
5k PB!! – 2 seconds (they all count!) quicker than my previous PB. The key thing though about it is I ran my previous PB over 5 years ago, when I was a mere 48 yr old! My previous PBs were run at Bushy Park Parkrun and a club 5k race in Battersea Park – both flat courses. Worthing Parkrun is along the sea-front promenade and a straight out and back course, so comparable to Battersea’s loop.
So satisfying to get a PB on a short distance, which isn’t my speciality as I’m currently training for a marathon in a couple of weeks. Thanks Runner’s Connect!
Robert Walton ran the Runners World Half Marathon and finished this race in the time of 2:06:12.
This is a full weekend of races, a 5K and 10K on Saturday morning and the Half on Sunday. I improved my time at every distance.
Eric Hoyme ran the 2018 Chicago Marathon and finished with a time of 3:08:19. This was a massive personal record by 17 minutes!
Great race despite rainy conditions! The most difficult part of the course for me was in and around Chinatown (close to mile 21). The bridges and elevation changes in this area took a toll on my legs. The mile splits show that shortly after this, starting in mile 23, I began to have a consistent slow down. After the race, I realized that I only consumed the equivalent of 2.33 gels and probably should have consumed closer to 4. Despite that this was definitely my best marathon performance so far! Overall, I am very happy with how I executed my race plan and believe that with a consistent 4 months of training leading up to race day I could easily run 3:05, probably faster. Thank you RC coaches and RC community for your support!
Tony Pallotta ran the Baltimore Running Festival Half Marathon with a finishing time of 1:51:27, which was a PR!
This race was my first HM and a very enjoyable experience. Some obstacles overcome were heavy work schedule, insomnia the last two nights (race excitement)and the challenging hilly course. I had started HM/M training 3 other times and had to stop training due to varying reasons so to complete the training and race was special. To run a whole race by effort and not relying on a pace watch was special too. The training was great and prepared me for the race. Also, a very dear friend passed away before the race so I dedicated the race to my memory of him. So, with all the uphills and high humidity and the toe crunching downhills, I am very satisfied with the results. Thanks to all the coaches for guiding me through!
Alan Haverkamp ran the KC Garmin Half Marathon and finished in a time of 1:32:40.
PR for this race by 2:30! Negative split it. Came into it nursing Achilles and back injuries. No problems with those during race.
Brian Tait ran the Amsterdam Marathon and finished this race in the time of 2:59:26. This was a huge PR by 28 minutes!
Everything was awesome. Ran the perfect race. Stoked!! Felt good almost the entire way. Was passing tonnes of people last 10k. Didn’t finish as fast as I was hoping but still ran negative splits. At the end it felt as though I was speeding up, but my time stayed 4:15/km!! What a day. So happy! Thanks for all the support coaching staff and other peeps on the forum. Been a great journey. No booze for 4 months!! That was tough but ultimately worth it.
Michelle Cox ran the Urban Bourbon Half Marathon with a finishing time of 2:57:18.
The best things about this race is that I completed it with no injuries and a few lessons learned. Due to a medical procedure I had on Thursday (18 Oct) I was dehydrated and carb depleted. I attempted to re-hydrate on Thursday evening and Friday but I just don’t think it was enough. Experienced GI issues during the race and my energy level just wasn’t where it needed to be. I had planned/dressed for cooler weather and it turned out to be quite a nice day. So I overheated. However, I was able to practice my mental toughness and power through to finish! 🙂
Vijayalayan R ran the Bengaluru Half Marathon 2018 and finished this race event in the time of 2:16:01. This was a personal record by 15 minutes!
This was my personal best and I never hoped that I will be able to achieve this timing. Thanks to the comprehensive training plan provided by Runners Connect and it helped me to achieve the target that was planned 4 months back.
Hiromi Otani ran the Mikan Marathon (10k) and finished with a time of 00:52:26.
It was hot weather but relatively speaking I was okay. At the end, I was able to sprint to goal – maybe I could have pushed little more during the race.
Aniko Belim ran the Ragnar Trail Relay Hill Country and finished this race in the time of 0:44:11.
This was my first ever trail race and we had two teams, 8 people in each one. There are 3 loops (green – 3mi, yellow – 5mi, and red – 7.7mi), and everybody has to run all 3, finishing with almost 16 miles total. My team was the competitive one, and the other is a “”just for fun””. It’s been raining in Texas for about a month now, and all the trails got muddy, and slippery, made it more challenging. Our team had more experienced runner in it, leading by a fast ultra runner, so I had a little pressure on me. I started with the yellow loop, which has the steepest hills in it. Luckily it was just drizzling this time, and I love running hills. Only the first mile of it was extremely muddy, after that just rocks.
Aniko Belim ran the Ragnar Trail Relay Hill Country and finished in a time of 0:25:33.
My second leg in the Relay, it was a little easier 3 mile loop. I ran it in the dark, so had to be more careful.
Trey Brush ran the PNC Atlanta 10 Mile Race and finished this distance in the time of 1:07:43, which was a PR by 1:36.
I was really quite shocked by this time. My PR on this race was in 2014 and I did not think I would get that time again. In fact my last PR for any distance was January of 2015! I got in a nice long warm up and legs felt solid. The first mile was pretty sketchy. As the race went on, I seemed to feel stronger and stronger. At the halfway point I thought I could hit my goal of 1:10:00 if I help the pace.
I really concentrated on holding on with a solid pace up the hills and cutting it loose going down and that seemed to really work. It was with 2 miles to go I knew I could hit the goal and with 1 mile to go I finally realized I could really have a good day.
Needless to say, very pleased with my fitness and where I am as we get prepared to start marathon training now. Appreciate the help from the coaches on this one!
Cheryl Link ran the Columbus Half Marathon and finished this race event in the time of 2:13:19.
Best race since breaking my elbow and being off running for an extended time 2 yrs ago!
Leslie Sturgeon ran the Detroit Half Marathon and finished in a time of 1:41:20. This was a new personal record by 9:10.
Detroit was the first full marathon I ran. Nice to come back and PR the half by 9 minutes. My last half PR was just 6 months ago.
Robert Walton ran the Runner’s World Half Marathon and finished with a time of 2:06:12.
I improved in speed at every distance this weekend.
Jana Redman ran the Ath Half Marathon and finished this race in the time of 2:21:51.
My husband and I dated while running in Athens last year as he trained for the Marine Corp. We love this town and enjoyed coming back to run today!! PS- While I didn’t have a PR, he CRUSHED his!!!
Edward Kaluzne ran the Columbus Childrens Hospital Half Marathon and finished in 1.59.45, which was a PR by five minutes!
First, thank you for a great training plan. Finished strong. Look forward to more progress in next effort. I need to work on my pacing. Usually too fast. Finished 13th in age group 66 years old. 8000 runners.
Mathias Landby ran the Amsterdam Marathon and completed this race event in the time of 3:24:01. This was a personal record by 5:25.
Had no idea what to expect of this race. This has been a year of getting over injuries so it was a bit hard to figure out where I stood with regards to last year. I started off gently, letting the crowds overtake without bothering about it too much. At around 13k I re-assessed and still felt really good. At this point I started feeling like something good may happen today..
At 21 I was still feeling pretty strong and cranked up the pace a bit more. At 26 I vanquished the memories from my last marathon in autumn 2017 where I blew up completely. 30 came and went and no wall. The last 10k are a bit of a haze. Very tired, but kept pushing as hard as I could.
The last 4k I felt like I was about to faint. I reminded myself of another RCer who had a nasty fall towards the end of his race but still finished his race. If he could do that, then I shouldn’t complain about feeling tired…
In the end I finished at the official result of 3:24:01 which was a PR by 5:25. Very surprised, but happy I even surpassed my intended target of 3:25. Age group-wise position 377 of 1499 and overall 2147 of 12135.
Very happy! Thanks RC for making this possible 🙂
Richard Amori ran the Detroit Free Press International Half-Marathon and finished with a time of 2:07, which was a PR!
I managed to run an average pace that was faster than my 5K PR! Thanks to RunnersConnect for a great training plan that set me up to not only meet my goals, but to blow them away.
DEIDRA P ran the Northshore Half Marathon with a finishing time of 1:44:25, which was a PR by 0:43.
I am so proud of myself! With few errors, I executed this race exactly the way I wanted. This race is on my home turf. At mile 11 we turned into the park and a large group of about 40 cyclists that we usually see saw me. One of them yelled, “It’s the mom who runs with her boys!” And then they repeatedly chanted, “”LETS-GO-MOM!”” They leaned out and high-fived me. I had a great time.?
Jason Moy ran the Detroit Half Marathon and finished this race in the time of 1:29:08.
This was supposed to be a tune up race before my first marathon in New York in 2 weeks and I initially planned on running at marathon pace. Decided at the last minute to run a little faster and then to run NYC more conservatively/slowly to make sure that I’ll finish. Detroit is always a fun race with the bridge and tunnel to/from Canada and I wanted to PR my hometown race!
Chris Carey ran the Desmond Doss Memorial 4 Bridges Half Marathon in 1:36:22.
Didn’t know what to expect going into this race. I’d been struggling recently during my marathon training. But I’d had success running this race in previous years (’15 and ’16), which is one of the reasons I’d decided to make it one of my tune up races as I attempt to BQ this December in Huntsville. I made my way to the starting line and told myself to relax and to run my race. Most importantly, I told myself to have fun and leave everything on the course. The gun went off.
Right off the bat, I could tell the legs felt good. About three miles in, they still felt strong. Around mile 6, I noticed myself smiling — I finally felt like my old racing self. I also looked at my watch and noticed that I was on a PR pace. After mile 8, the fatigue began to set in, and I felt myself struggling for the first time. I worked out a strategy — I’d run the next three miles a little more conservatively and then give it all I had the final mile. I just worked those three miles a quarter mile at a time and managed the final two climbs of the race as best I could. When I saw my watch click to 12.00, I threw in a surge to wake up my legs and sprinted as hard as I could toward the finish line. I crossed the line, exhausted, but overjoyed that I had finished with my second-best finish in the half, just slightly less than a minute off my PR. Overall, I finished 2nd in my age group and in the top 25 overall.
I thought back on my recent struggles and realized a couple of things. First, most of that training had been done in brutal conditions in the extreme heat. My body learned to adapt to the stresses that training was throwing at it. And those adaptations may have been pretty ugly at times, but they produced a beautiful result today. I am now embracing the rest of this training cycle with a new mindset: I’m back, and I’m only going to get stronger!
Greg Bertens ran the Ventura Marathon and finished with a time of 3:25. This was a massive personal record by 31 minutes!
Didn’t hit the BQ goal of 3:18, but did manage a 26.2 PR by 31 minutes. I actually hit a bunch of PRs in this race. Cardio was great, fueling was great, legs turned to jelly around 22. I see some leg strength training on the horizon! I’m actually thrilled!
Originally I planned this marathon to be a training run for a 2019 Mountains to Beach BQ effort, but I felt strong and thought I’d dig in. I’m very happy with what happened today – a successful failure? Some people are natural runners, but I think for many of us it’s a long road to Boston. For me this is one step closer!
Thanks Laura, Dylan and Claire for all your support, advice and encouragement. But also with suffering my requests to push my paces lower. But without injury, which I think is a real testament to the wisdom of the RC coaches and the program. Oh, and it’s my birthday today, this was my gift to myself 🙂
Terry Whelan ran the Ventura Half Marathon and finished this race event in the time of 1:37:51.
This race is well known locally as a fast but competitive event. Its is often used to age group qualify for the New York marathon, I was 111 seconds short of that goal. While not a life time PR this race result was a huge accomplishment. 3 mins faster than my previous best time this decade. I think its the highest age grade I have ever achieved.
Got the fuel and water strategy perfect. The pacing felt great until mile 11, which is probably how it should have been. I got a 10K PR from the first half of this race.
Kenneth Phua ran the NB Real Run Half Marathon and finished in a time of 2:00:53. This was a PR by 20 minutes!
This race is special because I ran it based on feeling the pace rather than watching my watch every kilometer. Did a negative split and was able to finish strong.
David Redman ran the Athens Half Marathon and finished this race in the time of 1:56:13. This was a new personal record by 11 minutes!
I was as prepared for this race as any I have done. My pace for this race was 8:49 and I kept an average cadence of 180….unbelievable. I am so pleased. I also had this race to share with my wife Jana. Thanks to the RC coaches for the schedule, adjustments, and mainly, the encouragement!!!
Ed Hubbard ran the Terri Roemer Paramus Run 10k and finished this distance in the time of 00:52:13, which was a PR by 31 seconds!
I felt like this was a good race for me given my current fitness level, and the course had a tough 200 yard uphill just before the mile 3 point. I was pretty wiped this afternoon after the race, so I don’t think I left much out on the course today. My “A” goal, which I knew was a stretch, was to beat 52 minutes. My “B” goal was to run a PB and get close to 52 minutes, so goal accomplished!
Kim Ritola ran the Baltimore Half Marathon with a finishing time of 1:40:44. This was a personal record by 3:21.
This was a tough course! I was not pleased to see the hills in the last couple of miles as I think there is a total of MAYBE 2 miles where you are fairly flat-the rest is either up or down. The first half net up and the second, net down. The good-it was a significant PR, second place in my age group and hard won (not much more to give at the end). It is really hard to find someone that is not only trying for the same pace, but also runs hills in the same style so I ended up running most of this race “alone”. But I do leave this race feeling confident in my running and the trajectory I am on. I am still enjoying this distance and feel I have a lot of room to improve. I feel confident this would have been a sub 1:40 on a faster course. Shout out to all the RC crew/team for guiding me to this point!
Zinan Chen ran the Ventura Marathon and finished with a time of 3:25:03, which was a PR by 4:43.
It was special because I felt strong even beyond 20 mile mark, where I normally petered out. My legs felt strong even beyond 24 miles, I would have run even faster to the finish. But my calves started to twitch, on the verge to cramp. So I had to slow down. I guess it was my upper legs and glutes were strong, but not my calves.
Hitomi Murokami ran the Ventura Half Marathon and finished this race event in the time of 1:50:47. This was a PR by 5 minutes and 8 seconds!
PR and 2nd place in my age group! I was able to keep my pace throughout and even able to surge at the very end.
Brian Carter ran the Bay State Marathon and completed this distance in the time of 3:24:45.
Tough race day with strong winds and only three weeks to recover since my last marathon. I ran 40 seconds slower than three weeks go but I am happy with my race.
I learn something important at every marathon. This one I learned to focus more on the process. Process is within our control, outcomes not entirely. I am also very happy with my training cycle and Runners Connect. I am much fitter, faster, and (I like to think) smarter, than at the start of this cycle. Thanks!
Kristina Daniel ran the Rock N Roll Denver Half Marathon with a finishing time of 2:32:31.
It was pretty cool because my husband cheered me on at several places since he couldn’t run it. I am excited for next month in Las Vegas. I feel like I can/should PR there.
Cherisse Haakonsen ran the Bay State Marathon and completed this race event in the time of 4:05:57.
It was great for 20 miles. Good comeback after Boston in the Spring but lots of work still needs to be done.
Oleg Kyrylko ran the MULTIKI Didorovka Trail Run 10k, finishing this distance in the time of 1:16:26.
I did it! Of course, I was not ready for the trail route with a climb of 370 meters. But I finished. I am very happy!
Jill Blackburn ran the Columbus Marathon and finished this race in the time of 3:55:03. This was a PR by 4 minutes 30 seconds!
Pushing through the mental side of the low’s and retaining my brain to push past it. My 15 year old son jumped on and ran the last 5 with me and as we were heading to the finish line he jumped off the course and said “this is your moment mom-not mine!” I wanted to cry but I was too tired! LOL
Elizabeth Clayton ran the 4 Bridges Half Marathon and finished in a time of 2:46:53. This was a new personal record by 8 minutes!
I’d only been training with RC for about 6 weeks and I was feeling really gloomy the whole week before the race and race day morning. Te Chattanooga 4 Bridges Half was very hilly and it was 37 degrees when we started. I had committed to the training trying to do everything I was supposed to do but I was still a little skeptical.
But I lined up and started the race anyway. Then two miles in and I’ thinking, “”Ok, I feel pretty good.”” 5 miles, 8 miles and I’m starting to wonder when that terrible feeling of “”That’s it. I’m done”” is going to kick in (like it’s always done in the past). 10 miles in and I see the pacer with the 2:45 flag! Oh my gosh!! I could not believe I was catching up with that pacer and I still felt like I had something left in the tank. I made it a point to do my best to catch him, and at mile 12 we started over the last bridge where I could see the finish line.
One last little hill near the end and the pacer got away from me slightly, but I was able to finish at 2:46:52 a PR by 8 minutes and a pace of 12:44 a PR by 33 seconds! I was absolutely stunned! This was a HUGE success for me! Thank you, RC coaches! I honestly didn’t believe I could improve that much in such a short amount of time.
Krishna Akkaram ran the Naperville Half Marathon with a finishing time of 1:54:02, which was a PR by 02:09.
This was my first ever half marathon I did last year at 2:10. so signed up for this just to see how much I have got better over this year. I had goal was to beat that 1:55 this year and this was my last chance. As of the day before the race, I was felling good with my full marathon training with no injuries and was in a good shape. Come race day it was super cold day (28 degrees at start). The first 4 miles were very irritating as my shoe laces keep coming out and I came to conclusion this is going to another 2 Hour Half. At 10K I was at around 56 mins which puts me at 1:56 and Mile 7 I was at 1:02:30. Then I smade a goal on reaching Mile 10 at 1:25 which is very fast for me and reached at 1:28. But overall feeling good and made another goal of reaching mile 12 at 1:45 which will give me 10 minutes for last 1.1 miles. Mile 12, I was at 1:45:46, thought should definitely do it from here. Gave it all for last mile and crashed after crossing the finish mile I know made a PR but was not sure whether I got below 1:55. I now feel accomplished and motivated for my first full marathon in a month.
Bhavana Mocherla ran the Amsterdam Half Marathon and finished this race in the time of 2.52. This was a PR by 8 minutes!
First international race!
Gerbrand Hendrikse ran the Amsterdam Marathon and finished with a time of 2:59:29. This was a personal record by 5 minute 21 seconds!
It is a big PR. Most important is that this is the first time I ran a marathon in less than three hours. I am very proud of that. In october 2017 I took the decision to do the Amsterdam marathon and try to finish within three hours. From that moment every workout and race I did was meant to reach that goal.
